View full sizeThomas Boyd/The Oregonian/2009The Timbers Army cheers and protects themselves from the smoke bombs after the Timbers scored their first goal in the US Open Cup game against the Seattle Sounders in 2009.

By Jack Cluth

After the riot in Port Said, officials in Cairo postponed a game between Al-Ismaili and Zamalek. Fans evidently with more time on their hands than common sense then set fire to Cairo’s main stadium. Just like Timbers fans would do, right?

When you examine this sorry phenomenon, you see that North America represents the only part of the world where violence and soccer aren’t flip sides of the same coin. Though somewhat diminished in recent years, the epic tales of fights between supporters of English sides are legendary…or shameful, depending on your perspective. Until the mid- to late-‘80s, the main purpose of a supporter’s club was to attack and beat up supporters of other teams. The games were of secondary importance. Soccer hooliganism was for too many a career path in the UK. Several former hooligans were so full of themselves that they wrote books about their “exploits.” It seems some of them could spell and articulate themselves in something resembling complete sentences. Serbia has an even worse history. There, most supporters groups were (and in some cases continue to be) fronts for criminal activities like smuggling, kidnapping, and murder.